Things to Know Before Attending a Cleveland Guardians Baseball Game

No matter how good or bad our teams are (and they certainly can run the gamut between those extremes!), Cleveland is undeniably a die-hard sports town.

Cleveland has three professional sports teams, one of which being the Cleveland Guardians baseball team.

Cleveland has had a professional baseball team since 1901. The Guardians play in the American League (AL), and have won six AL pennants and two World Series titles (the World Series titles in 1920 and 1948).

The Guardians have gone through several name changes and played at 3 different stadiums throughout their history, currently playing at Progressive Field in downtown Cleveland at the iconic intersection of Carnegie and Ontario.

Whether you’re a lifelong Cleveland fan, a casual baseball watcher, or a visitor from out-of-town, there are plenty of things you should know about going to see a Cleveland Guardians game in-person at Progressive Field.

This guide will cover everything to keep in mind if you want to come cheer on the Guards!

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Why go to a Cleveland Guardians game?

Cleveland’s baseball team has a long tradition in this city; we’ve had a professional baseball team for more than a century, and that team has had several firsts in the MLB (like the first African American to play in the AL in Larry Doby, and the first Black manager in Frank Robinson in 1975).

And while the Guardians franchise only has two World Series wins under its belt, the team has made it to the World Series several times – most recently in 2016, when they lost in Game 7 to the Chicago Cubs.

After the Cubs’ World Series win in 2016, the Cleveland Guardians are now in the longest World Series win drought out of any team in the MLB – but that doesn’t mean they’re not good!

Going to see a baseball game in person is so different to watching it on TV. The excitement of being in Progressive Field just hits different, and it’s worth doing at least once or twice a season.

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Where to sit at Progressive Field

Did you know that Progressive Field is actually the smallest ballpark in the MLB? Though it’s all relative, of course, since the stadium still has a capacity of 34,830.

When it comes to buying tickets for a Guardians game, you can purchase season tickets, a Six Pack with tickets to six games, or single game tickets.

There are premium seating options including suites, lounges, boxes, and club seats. These are obviously the most expensive seating options, running anywhere from $175 to $350+ per ticket.

In the regular seating areas, field-level seats are the next-most most expensive, but they offer the best views and the most comfort. You can expect to pay anywhere from $45-$100 for these seats.

If you’re looking to save money, sitting in the upper level or bleacher seats is more affordable. These seats can be as low as $10 to $15. But keep in mind that these seats may be exposed directly to the sun during daytime games, and that the bleacher seats don’t have seatbacks.

If you’re interested in attending many games at Progressive Field and don’t mind standing, you can also purchase the Guardians Ballpark Pass for $54 a month, which gets you standing room access to every regular season home game (that means you could conceivably go to 81 games for less than $300!).

Standing Room Only tickets mean you’ll be watching the game from designated areas that include The Corner Bar, the left field and right field drink rails, the Home Run Porch, Heritage Plaza, and the new Terrace Garden and Terrace Hall in left field.

Which sections have netting?

If you’re looking to avoid a view obstructed by safety netting, you’ll want to avoid the following sections at Progressive Field: sections 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 162, 163, 164, 165, 166, 167, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173, and 174.

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Food and drinks at Progressive Field

Enjoying food and drinks is half the fun at a baseball game, and Progressive Field has plenty of options to choose from. The stadium prides itself on offering food and drink options from lots of local vendors, including more than a dozen Cleveland-area restaurants and breweries.

Some of my favorite spots you can find in the Right Field District and Infield District of Progressive Field include:

• Happy Dog*: Classic hot dogs with a twist (they even have a new vegan dog this year called The Wild Thing)
• Melt*: Grilled cheeses like you’ve never seen them before (and try the new Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese Bowl this year)
• Throwin’ Smoke BBQ: Barbecue favorites including mac and cheeses
• Dynomite Burger: Fresh, made to order burgers and sandwiches
• CLE Steak*: Cheesesteaks!
• Barrio*: Mouth-watering street tacos
• Ohio City Burrito*: Tasty burritos and other Mexican fare
• Momocho*: Tacos, quesadillas, and delicious nachos
• Dante’s Inferno*: Hand-crafted pizzas
• Sweet Moses*: Homemade ice cream and other sweets

The new Terrace Hall is open for the 2025 season, too, which is basically a fancy beer hall with indoor and outdoor spaces to watch the game (with the Terrace Garden rooftop patio upstairs), plus local craft beers and some food specials like fried baloney sandwiches and giant turkey legs.

There are also several different bar areas at Progressive Field:

• The Corner Bar: This 2-story bar in the Right Field District has 40 beers on tap, and even an open-air fire pit on the roofdeck.
• Fat Head’s Beer Garden*: Enjoy a craft beer and some pub grub at this outdoor beer garden inside the stadium near third base. (Fat Head’s is the official craft beer of the Cleveland Guardians.)
• The Brew Kettle*: Another place to grab a beer and some food during the game.
• La Cave du Vin*: Over by The Corner, Progressive Field now has a wine bar!

* Denotes a locally-owned spot!

And note: As of 2025, Progressive Field is a fully cashless venue. Accepted payment methods inside the ballpark are credit/debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Guards Mobile Wallet.

Good to know: You ARE allowed to bring your own food and (non-alcoholic) drinks into Progressive Field, too! As long as you’re not sitting in a suite or other premium seating area, you can bring your own food and avoid the stadium concessions altogether. (No cans, glass, or insulated drink containers allowed though – basically you can bring in bottled water or juice boxes.)

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What can I bring to a Cleveland Guardians game?

Speaking of things you can/can’t bring to a Guardians game, let’s talk about bag policies, and things you can/can’t bring.

The MLB does not have bag/item rules that are ss strict as, say, the NFL!

Progressive Field bag policy

For a Guardians baseball game, you can bring any bag as long as it does not exceed measurements of 16″x16″x8″ – which usually covers all purses, most tote bags, and even some small backpacks. Bags DO NOT have to be clear for Guardians games.

Your bag can be a cooler bag as long as it’s soft-sided and within the size limits. (But note it cannot be filled with canned drinks.)

Permitted and prohibited items

A few things you CAN bring to the game with you include:

• Food – literally any kind of food as long as you aren’t sitting in a suite or club
• Clear, plastic, factory sealed water bottles 20oz or less (one per person)
• Blankets
• Cameras and video cameras – for personal use only
• Strollers
• Umbrellas (personal-sized, and they can only be used during rain delays when the field is covered by tarp – not during game play)
• Banners/signs as long as they don’t interfere with game play/other fans’ view and don’t contain any sticks or obscene messages
• Baseball mitts

A few things you CAN NOT BRING to Progressive Field include:

• Firearms and knives
• Outside alcohol of any kind
• Drugs, tobacco products (no smoking), and vapes
• Cans, glass, or insulated drink containers (no Stanleys, sorry!)
• Hard-sided coolers
• Tripods, selfie-sticks, monopods, and camera lenses larger than 6 inches
• Aerosol cans (including spray-on sun screen)
• Face paint and headdresses that reference or appropriate American Indian culture
• Inflatable objects like beach balls
• Objects like brooms, nets, etc.
• Noise-making items like cow bells, air horns, whistles, etc.
• Skateboards or roller blades
• Pets of any kind (service animals are allowed)

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Parking at Progressive Field

Reserved parking at Progressive Field is very limited. It may be available as an add-on when purchasing your ticket, but don’t count on being able to park at the stadium itself.

Progressive Field is in downtown Cleveland, though, and there are many garages and surface lots within a block or two. These garages/lots fill up quickly on game days, and the “special event pricing” sometime gets crazy! (Garage prices above $40 are not uncommon, especially for popular games.)

You might have better luck reserving parking nearby using SpotHero. It’s a good idea to reserve your parking in advance to save up to 50% off drive-up prices.

If you’d prefer to use public transportation and skip downtown parking altogether, you can take the Red, Blue, or Green RTA light rail lines to Tower City Center and walk about five minutes to Progressive Field. Day passes for the RTA cost just $5, and most stations outside of downtown offer free parking! (Buy tickets right in the Transit app on your phone.)

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Special events and ballpark days

Throughout the season, there are a number of special events and ballpark days that occur at Progressive Field that can enhance your gameday experience.

Some of these special events include:

• Dollar Dog Nights: Enjoy $1 hot dogs while supplies last; 2025 dates include May 30, June 6 and 27; July 4 and 18; August 1, 15, and 29; September 27.
• Phantom Fireworks shows: An evening fireworks spectacular over Progressive Field; planned for May 30; June 6 and 27; July 4, 5, 18, and 19; August 1, 15, 16, 29, and 30; September 27.
• Free Shirt Friday: Select Friday games, usually limited to the first 10,000 fans.
• $2 Pregame in the District: Enjoy discounted drinks before the game (most Fridays and Saturdays).
• Kids Fun Day: Exciting activities for the Guardians’ littlest fans, usually on select Sundays.

You can find a full schedule of events on the Guardian website.

The Guardians are also doing several “Theme Nights” throughout the season, where special tickets will include limited-edition promotional items and experiences (think: college nights, Star Wars night, etc.). You MUST purchase special Theme Night tickets in order to get the special promo items. More info here.

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Are Guardians games good for kids?

Along with planned Kids Fun Days at the ballpark, and the chance to meet Slider and watch the hot dog races at every game, Progressive Field also offers special options for families with kids.

You can get kids game tickets (12 and under) for regular season games starting at $10 with the purchase of an adult ticket (max of 2 kids tickets per adult). These tickets are for the dedicated Family Deck, which is an area specially designed for families.

The Family Deck is home to the Smucker’s Kids Clubhouse, with interactive activities, play areas, photo ops, and more. (Some of the Family Deck activations had to be removed during recent construction, but new ones will be returning throughout the 2025 season!)

(Family Value Packs of tickets are also available for Sunday-Thursday games. More info here.)

Parents and young children can also visit Fan Services (Section 153 in the Main Concourse and Section 550 of the Upper Concourse) to get a free ID wristband for games that will list the child’s name and seat location in case you get separated at all!

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Pre-game and post-game logistics

Before the game

All gates open 1 hour prior to game time for Sunday through Thursday games, 1.5 hours prior to game time for Friday and Saturday games in April, May, and September, and 2 hours prior to first pitch for Friday and Saturday games from May 30-August 30.

If you want to have time to eat some food and browse the team shop before the game begins, it’s a good idea to arrive at least 20 minutes before the entrance time. This will give you time to park, walk to your entrance, and get through the ticket control and bag check, which can sometimes have long lines.

Progressive Field has the following entrances:

• Progressive Field Left Field Gate
• Progressive Field Right Field Gate
• Progressive Field Infield Gate
• Progressive Field Gate A
• Progressive Field Gate B
• Progressive Field Gate C
• Progressive Field Gate D

Depending on your seat, you’ll enter at one of these gates.

After the game

When it comes to post-game logistics, how long it takes to leave Progressive Field and how bad traffic will be if you’re driving can vary depending on the weather, game outcome, planned events, etc.

For a major losing game where people started to leave early, it won’t be difficult to get out of Progressive Field. But for close games or winning games, there may be a lot of congestion at the end of the game. Prepare for an extra 30 to 45 minutes when leaving.

If you’re looking for bars near Progressive Field where you can celebrate after the game, these are some popular nearby bars you can walk to that stay open late:

• The Clevelander Bar & Grill
• Thirsty Parrot
• Wild Eagle Saloon
• City Tap Cleveland
• Flannery’s Pub

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Hotels near Progressive Field

If you’re coming from out of town or want to spend the night in Downtown Cleveland after a game, there are many hotels to choose from near Progressive Field.

Some of the best hotels near Progressive Field are:

• Hilton Garden Inn Cleveland Downtown
• Kimpton Schofield Hotel
• Metropolitan at the 9
• Residence Inn Cleveland Downtown
• Roost Cleveland (apartment-style hotel)

Each of these hotels is within a couple of blocks of Progressive Field so you can walk to and from the game in just a few minutes.

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Will you be going to any Cleveland Guardians games this year?